It’s Time for the United States to Grade the U.N. and Other International Organizations (full text)(top)

…. Whether it’s the U.N. or other global institutions, the United States should regularly assess international organizations to see if they serve our priorities and collective goals effectively. ….

Two sober public servants are proposing just that …. new Multilateral Aid Review Act would create an executive branch task force to assess 38 organizations, as well as a parallel peer review body, made up of experts appointed by the Republican and Democratic leaders of both the House and Senate. …

…. pick a few touchstones on which to grade both state-based agencies …. and hybrids that integrate private and civil society partners … suggest five.

First, organizations must serve our nation’s and citizens’ interests. …. give the United States a large voice and a veto against mischief.

Second, it is worth testing whether bodies meet their own mandate. …. are they creeping away from their original intent?

Third, does an agency serve the basic values of the United States and of humankind? …. advance peace, prosperity, and pluralism? ….

Fourth, institutions need to be accountable and transparent. …. organizational processes should be open to scrutiny to avoid waste and graft. …..

Last …. worth trying to judge organizations’ comparative nimbleness. Some organizations have a capacity to evolve effectively, like NATO after the Cold War welcoming former foes. …. The reports of the Multilateral Organization Performance Assessment Network are as thorough as its name is difficult to say. Publish What You Fund offers exacting assessments of organizations’ relative transparency. …. other major Western governments assess multilateral agencies’ efficacy and alignment with their members’ global aims, just as the U.K. and Australia do. It would be fitting and responsible for the United States to do so too, and on a formal basis. …..

…. help the executive and legislative branches decide which agencies deserve taxpayers’ money most. …. indeed, a benefit of graded reports …. is that they demonstrably give those graded an incentive to improve.